Each credit report bureau places an explanation of terms usually on the backside of the report pages. In it, they explain what the numbers and letters you see next to your accounts mean. So, if you see something like I9, don’t fret as it should be defined in the explanation of terms.

Reading a Credit Report

Once you've obtained a copy of your credit report, you'll be able to see what your creditors are saying about you. There's just one problem -- credit reports can be a little confusing. Never fear! CCCS-OC is here to help. In the following paragraphs you'll find a step-by-step explanation of how to read and interpret each section of your credit report.

I.D. Section

Here you'll find identifying information like your:

• name
• current address
• social security number
• date of birth
• spouse's name (if applicable)

Easy, right? But don't just skim over this section. Read all the entries to make sure everything is correct. One bad piece of information and the credit history listed on your report could be wrong.

Credit History Section

This is the meat of the report. It contains a list of your open and paid credit accounts and indicates any late payments reported by your creditors. Although it may seem a little tedious, it's essential that you read through this section very thoroughly. If you find any information that is incorrect or accounts that don't belong to you, you'll need to submit a dispute letter to the credit-reporting agency.

The basic format for the credit history section (see sample) is as follows:

• Company Name - identifies the company that is reporting the information.
• Account Number - lists your account number with the company.
• Whose Account - Indicates who is responsible for the account and the type of participation you have with the account. Abbreviations may vary depending on the reporting agency but here are some of the most common:
  • I - Individual
  • U - Undesignated
  • J - Joint
  • A - Authorized User
  • M - Maker
  • T - Terminated
  • C - Co-maker/Co-signer
  • S - Shared

 

• Date Opened - This is the month and year you opened the account with the credit grantor.
• Months Reviewed - Lists the number of months the account history has been reported.
• Last Activity - Indicates the date of the last activity on the account. This may be the date of your last payment or last charge.
• High Credit - Represents the highest amount charged or the credit limit. If the account is an installment loan, the original loan amount will be listed.
• Terms - For installment loans, the number of installments may be listed or the amount of the monthly payments. For revolving accounts, this column is often left blank.
• Balance - Indicates the amount owed on the account at the time it was reported.
• Past Due - This column lists any amount past due at the time the information was reported.
• Status - A combination of letters and numbers are used to indicate the type of account of the timeliness of payment.
  
  Abbreviations for the type of account are as follows:
  • O - Open
  • R - Revolving
  • I - Installment
  • Abbreviations for Timeliness of Payment varies among agencies. Numbers are used to represent how current you are in your payments. Current or paid as agreed is usually represented by 0 or 1. Larger numbers (up to 9) indicate that an account is past due.
• Date Reported - Indicates the last time information on this account was updated by your creditor.

Collection Accounts Section

If you've had any accounts referred to collection agencies in the last seven years, this is where they will be reported. The name of the collection agency will be listed along with the amount you owe and, in some cases, their contact information. If a collection is listed on your report that doesn't look familiar to you, contact the credit bureau and submit a dispute letter.

For your own piece of mind, you may also want to contact the collection agency to determine the nature of the account. Here's why.

• You may find out that the collection account is NOT yours. Perhaps it belongs to someone whose name or social security number is very similar to yours. If this is the case, ask the collection agency to acknowledge this fact in writing. They should send a copy of the letter to you AND the credit reporting agency so that the mistaken information can be cleared from your report.
• You may find out that the collection account IS yours. If so, it is in your best interest to determine the accuracy of the amount of the collection account and make arrangements to satisfy your obligation as quickly as possible. Once the collection account has been paid, you should request a letter from the collection agency to this effect. Again, make sure the credit reporting agency gets a copy of the letter so that they can list the account as paid.

 

Courthouse Records Section

This section may also be referred to as Public Records. Here you'll find a listing of public record items (obtained from local, state and federal courts) that reflect your history of meeting financial obligations. These include:

• Bankruptcy records
• Tax liens
• Judgments
• Collection accounts
• Overdue child support (in some states)

Look closely at all the information listed here. If anything is mistaken, contact the credit bureau and submit a dispute letter.

Additional Information

This section consists primarily of former addresses and past employers as reported by your creditors.

Inquiry Section

Contains a list of the businesses that have received your credit report in the last 24 months. If you find the names of businesses that sound unfamiliar, you should find out who they are and why they're looking at your credit! The credit-reporting agency may be able to help you with contact information. Remember, only companies that have received your written authorization should be able to check your credit history.

Time information is retained

The length of time that information remains in your file varies.

• Credit and collection accounts will be reported for 7 years from the date of the last activity with the original creditor.
• If you've filed a Chapter 7 or Chapter 11 bankruptcy, this information will be reported for 10 years from the date filed.
• All other courthouse records will be reported for 7 years from date filed.

 

Example:

Pre-Employment Credit Report Report requested by:  Any Business 21 Any St Tampa, Fl 12345 Phone: (123) 000.0000   Report dated: 8/21/09 Search results for: Name = John B. Worker SSN = 990000000 Address = 10000 N Ave. A, Tampa Fl 33615     NOTE:  National Employment Screening, LLC assumes no liability for any claims for damages arising from the use of this data beyond the actual cost of the report performed.     EXPERIAN REPORT - 03/30/02 Personal Information     Reported Name       SSN     Address Address Address    John B Workman   Nickname - JACK Workman   AKA - JOHN SMITh   AKA - JONATHAN SMITH Workman JR   000-99-0000   123-56-7891 - SSN is different than input   123-56-6789 - SSN is different than input   10209 W. Hillsborough Ave 33615Last Sub:  01212002   1221 Memorial Hwt APT 1  Tampa Fl 33615  Last Sub:   *22215 Rocky Creek Dr   #231 Tampa Fl 33615  Last Sub:                 06899 To 01/2002   1X   Employment     Date Reported Last Updated Origination Employer     Employer       ACE Motors 2211 Grand Central Tampa Fl Duece Motors 1221 Valrico Road Valrico Fl   unknown 09/92   10/99 09/93   Inquiry Inquiry   Profile Summary Public Records 3 Dispd Accounts 1 Now Del/Drg 3 30 day delinq 0   Tradelines 10 Paid Accounts 2 Was Del/Drg 0 60 day delinq 0   Satis Accts 6 Inquiries 3 # Derog Months 0 90 day delinq 0   Inqs/6 MO 0 Oldest Trade 01/68   Type High Limit Balance Past Due Payment %Avail Revolving $18,720 $20,000 $15,657 $0 $475 29% Installment $0 $336,575 $49,037 $1,821 *$1,521 - Real Estate     $239,000   $4,128 - Totals $18,720 $486,575 $313,694 $1,821 $4,934   **High, Limit and Payment values are calculated for open accounts only. Balances and Past Due items are calculated for all trade lines. * Indicates estimated payment total Public Records Date Filed/ $Amount Type/ Plaintiff Reference/ Paid Court/ Court Code 06/20/94        $12.4K   County tax lien released 07/01/95     Cid 45078334   SO Florida DISTRICT COURT   3051111   09/19/93         $1200   Judgement   ALLIED COMPANY     D 7505835   COUNTY SPR CT Hillsborough   3019999   02/10/94         $100K   Bankruptcy Chapter 13 - petition filed     D 35054539906234154   U S BANKRUPTCY COURT   3009999   Revolving Accounts   Current Status Hist Status   Acc Name/Address Status/ ECOA/ Condition BALDT/ OPEN/ LSTPD/ DEL Amt1/ Amt2 Pmt/ Term $Bal $Past Due   Mths    30    60    90 Rating Tampa SAVINGS Acct: ************ Subcode: 1211248  KOB: BC Status: CURR ACCT ** Credit line closed - consumer request - reported by subscriber ** Loan Type: 18 CRC 05/96 C 2 CLOSED 10/97 05/96   7000-L 5700-H   REV 0   18    00 00 00 B0CCCCCCCCCC CCCCCC R B CBUSASEARS Acct: ********* Subcode: 2390446  KOB: DC Status: DELINQ 180 ** Account was in dispute - now resolved - reported by subscriber ** Loan Type: 07 CHG 05/96 C 2 BK ADJ PLN 05/96 01/68 05/96 1400-L     REV 0   99    01 01 04 7654321CCCC0 0CCCCCCCCCCCC R 7 ACE EMPLOYEES CREDIT UNION Acct: ********* Subcode: 1220855  KOB: BC Status: CURR ACCT Loan Type: 18 CRC 02/86 2 OPEN 01/99 02/85 01/98 10K-L 7108-H 180 REV 6029   99    00 00 00  CCCCCCCCCCC C00000000CCCC R   1ST.STATE BANK Acct: ********** Subcode: 1299978  KOB: BC Status: CURR ACCT Loan Type: 18 CRC 01/90 1 OPEN 06/96 01/90 05/96 10K-L 9612-H 255 REV 8628   85    00 00 00  CCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCC000CCCC R          Revolving Totals       $455 $14,687 $0     Installment Accounts   Current Status Hist Status   Acc Name/Address Status/ ECOA/ Condition BALDT/ OPEN/ LSTPD/ DEL Amt1/ Amt2 Pmt/ Term $Bal $Past Due   Mths    30    60    90 Rating Burdines Acct: ************ * Subcode: 2313849  KOB: DC Status: CURR ACCT Loan Type: 06 ISC 02/95 3 OPEN 06/96 02/95   1000-L   50-est 24MO 1000   17    00 00 00 NNNNNNNNNNNN NNNNN I N Best BANK Acct: *********** Subcode: 1132912  KOB: BI Status: 30 DAY DEL Loan Type: 00 AUT 06/96 1 OPEN 06/96 12/93 05/96 06/96 22.3K-O   465 48MO 11.0K 465 31    01 00 00 1CCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCC I 1 Coastal BK Acct: ************ ********* Subcode: 1119999  KOB: BI Status: 30 3 TIMES Loan Type: 02 SEC 12/96 2 OPEN 12/96 03/93 11/96 12/96 43.2K-O   956 60MO 19.3K 956 39    03 00 00 1CCCCCC1CCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCC I 1 HOME Loan FINANCIAL Acct: ************ ** Subcode: 5935250  KOB: FM Status: CURR ACCT Loan Type: 08 R/E 05/90 2 OPEN 01/98 05/90 12/97 400K-O   3128 360MO 234K   92    00 00 00  CCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCC000CCCC I          Installment Totals       $4,699 $265,380 $1,421     Trade Accounts   Current Status Hist Status   Acc Name/Address Status/ ECOA/ Condition BALDT/ OPEN/ LSTPD/ DEL Amt1/ Amt2 Pmt/ Term $Bal $Past Due   Mths    30    60    90 Rating CREDIT AND COLLECTION Orig Creditor: DR. JOHN Houseman Acct: ************ Subcode: 3980999  KOB: YC Status: COLLACCT ** Customer disputed account - reported by subscriber ** Loan Type: 31 UNK 09/94 2 COLLACCT 04/96 09/94 09/94 500-O   10-est   250   20    00 00 00 999999999999 99999999 U 9 AAA Travel CHARGE USA Acct: ********** Subcode: 3488520  KOB: N Status: CURR ACCT Loan Type: 18 CRC 12/97 C 1 PAID 12/97 03/95   4000-L 3612-H   1MO 0   34    00 00 00  CCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCC000CCCC U          Trade Totals       $10 $250 $0     Inquiries Inquiry Date Subscriber/Acc# Subcode/KOB Amt/Type/Terms 12/05/98   Burdines 2313849 DC    /  / UNK 12/03/98   Tampa BAY COMPANY 2390446 DC 1500 /  / 0 10/21/97   HILLsborough BANK 2240679 BC    /  / UNK   Fraud Shield / FACS+ Summary Record Type SIC Code Text Inquiry Address Message Phone Answering Service Tampa ANSWER-ALL 11299  Dale mabry Tampa Fl  33602 818.555.1212 Messages From 03/01/96 inq count for ssn = 8 From 03/01/96 inq count for address = 15 Input SSN Issued 1965 - 1966   Record Type SIC Code Text Onfile Address Message Business XYZ investments 2299 Regal St Tampa Fl 32219 213.123.2222 Messages   Record Type SIC Code Text Retired Social   INPUT SSN RECORDED AS DECEASED Messages DOD: 03/30/96   Consumer Statement Statement Type: Victim statements - 03/30/07 **#Hk# Id Security Alert: Fraudulent Applications May Be Submitted In My Name Or My Identity May Have Been Used Without My Consent To Fraudulently Obtain Goods Or Services. Do Not Extend Credit Without First Contacting Me Personally And Verifying All Applicant Information. This Security Alert Will Be Maintained For 90 Days Beginning 05-01-02. Consumer Assistance Referral: EXPERIAN 701 EXPERIAN PARKWAY PO BOX 949 ALLEN, TX 75013 (800) 682-7654   END OF REPORT - EXPERIAN

 

What can be taken off my credit report? Any inaccurate, unverifiable accounts such as inquiries, old addresses, additional names on the report (you must have at least one name on your report), unpaid collections, charge-offs, repossessions, bankruptcies, medical bills, credit card debt, and divorce debts.

What can't be taken off my credit report? There are certain things that just can’t be removed from you’re your credit report. Those things are federal and state tax liens, child support, new student loans, and any bankruptcies reported by the bankruptcy court.

What is a Good Score? The higher your credit score, the better; however, there is no real industry standard. Credit scores range from 350-850. Each creditor/lender judges your credit score differently and takes other factors into consideration when determining your eligibility and/or risk. Typically, anything above 690 is considered a great score. Below a 620 is frequently referred to as “sub-prime.”

How often do Credit Scores Change? Your credit score is fluid; it changes as your credit information changes. Anytime new information is added to your credit report, your credit score can change. The credit reporting agencies (Transunion, Equifax, Experian) usually update their credit data every 90 days.

I have a Number of Credit Cards. Will that Affect my Credit Score? Your overall credit history will determine how your credit is affected by having numerous credit cards. However, having an overabundance of credit cards with high balances or credit availability can negatively impact risk scores if your credit history is questionable.

How do you begin to establish credit? Consumers desirous of establishing a good credit record should start off by applying for a credit card. The companies that monitor credit history compile information based on your payments and responsible consumers build up a good credit report by promptly paying off what they owe. A second consideration, especially if the consumer did not qualify for a conventional credit card, is to apply for secured credit. This method lessens the lender's risk by having access to some kind of guaranty from the borrower in case of default. An alternative way is to have a person with a proven history of good credit co-sign a loan. These co-signers are a form of guarantee diminishing the lender's risk of non-payment.

Is There a Rule of Thumb Regarding the Number of Credit Cards to Have? In general, it's better to have a few credit cards with high credit limits than a large number of cards with limited credit limits. Having credit cards with high credit limits demonstrates that you are responsible enough to carry a high credit limit on multiple cards.

Is it a Good Idea to Transfer my High Credit Card Balance to a New Card with a Rock-bottom Rate? If you want to transfer your credit card debt to a different card, you need to make sure that there are no catches with the introductory rate of the new card. For example, sometimes the low introductory interest rate on a card is only for a very limited time and then it skyrockets to an exuberant amount. You also need to ask if there are annual fees, late charges, or any other stipulations that might make transferring your credit card debt to a new card counter-productive.

So what is Credit Monitoring? Credit monitoring is the automated process of

keeping an eye on your credit. Credit monitoring helps protect you against identity theft and monitors any changes and/or inquiries made to your credit file by alerting you within approximately 24 hours of any major changes made to your credit file.

Will Credit Monitoring Hurt My Credit Score? No. Credit monitoring has no affect to your credit score. It’s simply a service that keeps your credit in check. The only time it affects your credit is when you ask a creditor to inquire about your credit.

Does Credit Monitoring Monitor my Credit with all Three Bureaus? The specific credit monitoring service you use will determine which credit bureau is referenced in monitoring your credit. Each credit monitoring service uses only one of the three bureaus to monitor your credit; however, since the activity you’re looking out for affects your credit across the board, it won’t matter which bureau your credit monitoring service uses. They’ll still be able to identify unexpected changes or discrepancies in your credit report.

How do I get a Hold of My Credit Report? There are three major credit bureaus that offer credit reports:
Equifax
1-800-685-1111
www.equifax.com
Experian
1-888-397-3742
www.experian.com
Trans Union
1-800-916-8800
www.transunion.com
 

To get a copy of your credit report, contact one of these three bureaus. Each bureau interprets your credit information differently, so you might want to get a report from all three.

Can I get a Copy of My Credit Report at Any Time? By law, you're entitled to one free credit report annually from the credit bureaus. This can be accessed at: www.annualcreditreport.com - You can also request a free copy of your credit report if you were denied credit; however, you can only request a copy from the specific credit bureau that supplied the credit report to the creditor who denied you.

What Information do Credit Bureaus Collect about Me? Credit bureaus collect your identification information, employment history, credit inquiries, and any additional public records and data.